The following is a summary of “Prevalence and risk factors of urinary tract infection in kidney recipients: a meta-analysis study,” published in the September 2023 issue of Nephrology by Hosseinpour et al.

Kidney recipient urinary tract infections (UTIs) are common and can impact transplant outcomes, but risk factors are controversial.

Researchers performed a retrospective study investigating UTI’s prevalence and risk factors in kidney recipients. They retrieved 26 published papers (2005 and 2022) by searching databases such as Medlib, ScienceDirect, and PubMed using keywords. The pooled prevalence of UTI in kidney recipients was calculated, and the OR with 95% CI for each risk factor. Data analysis was accessed using the random effects model in R and Stata 14.

The results showed 72,600 sample sizes, with an average age of 48.7 years. The pooled UTI prevalence was 35% (95% CI, 30–40%). Risk factors associated with UTI included being female (OR = 3.13; 95% CI: 2.35—4.17), older age (OR = 1.03; 95% CI: 1—1.05), a history of UTI (OR = 1.31; 95% CI: 1.05—1.63), receiving a kidney from a deceased donor (OR = 1.59; 95% CI: 1.23—2.35), long-term use of an indwelling catheter (OR = 3.03; 95% CI: 1.59—6.59), having a ureteral stent (OR = 1.54; 95% CI: 1.16—2.06), diabetes (OR = 1.17; 95% CI: 0.97—1.41), hypertension (OR = 1.6; 95% CI: 1.26—2.28), experiencing an acute rejection episode (OR = 2.22; 95% CI: 1.45—3.4), and having abnormal urinary tract anatomy (OR = 2.87; 95% CI 1.44—5.74).

They concluded that kidney recipients have a high risk of UTI, associated with female sex, old age, and other factors.

Source: bmcnephrol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12882-023-03338-4